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Kubaneh
Kubaneh (כובאנה): Yemenite-Jewish buttery pull-apart bread baked overnight for Shabbat
IsraeliKubaneh goes into a low oven on Friday afternoon in Yemenite homes in Rosh HaAyin and Tel Aviv's Kerem HaTeimanim, and comes out on Shabbat morning as a burnished, buttery dome that pulls apart into soft coils. It is eaten with grated tomato, zhug and long-baked brown eggs. Because it bakes for hours at a very low heat, the crust turns mahogany and slightly sweet while the inside steams in its own butter. The mistake is using a pot without a tight lid: the bread dries out instead of steaming. Chef's tip: grease the pot generously and seal the lid with a strip of foil, then trust the process; opening the oven at night lets the steam out.
- Total time
- 640 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
For the dough
- 1 ⅛ lb strong white bread flour
- ¼ oz instant dried yeast
- 2 tbsp sugar
- ⅓ oz salt
- 1 ¼ cups lukewarm water
For shaping
- 5 ½ oz unsalted buttervery soft (or samneh clarified butter)
- 1 tsp nigella seeds (optional)
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Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Mix 1 ⅛ lb strong white bread flour, ¼ oz instant dried yeast, 2 tbsp sugar and ⅓ oz salt, add 1 ¼ cups lukewarm water and knead for 10 minutes until the dough is smooth, very elastic and slightly sticky. Cover and leave to double, about 1 hour.
70 minStep 2: Grease a 20–22 cm ovenproof pot with a lid, or a kubaneh pot, with a spoonful of ¾ oz unsalted butter.
Step 3: Divide the dough into 8 balls. Smear the counter with a little butter, and stretch each ball thin with buttered hands into a rough rectangle, almost see-through. Spread with more 3 ⅔ oz unsalted butter.
15 minStep 4: Roll each sheet into a rope, then coil it into a snail and set the snails snugly in the pot. Brush with the rest of ¾ oz unsalted butter and scatter over 1 tsp nigella seeds.
10 minStep 5: Cover with the lid and leave to rise for 45 minutes. Heat the oven to 350°F.
45 minStep 6: Seal the lid with foil and bake at 350°F for 1 hour, until risen and starting to colour.
60 minStep 7: Turn the oven down to 200°F and leave the kubaneh in overnight, 8–9 hours, without opening. It is ready when deep brown and the layers lift away when pulled.
540 minStep 8: Turn out and serve hot, pulling apart at the table.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 380 kcal
- Protein
- 7 g
- Carbs
- 47 g
- Fat
- 18 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does kubaneh take?
- About 640 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 600 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of strong white bread flour?
- Plain flour, same amount (the dough will be softer and rise a little less).
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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